Feliz Navidad: Buenos Aires part 2

We’re back in Buenos Aires, this time for a little longer, and head off our overnight bus to Palermo district where we’ll be staying for four nights. We’ve rented an air bnb and it’s exactly what we’d hoped for: with a little balcony, a pool and a kitchen it feels like home and a lovely place to relax and spread out. We do a food and booze shop for Christmas then have a chilled afternoon watching a film, having some drinks, playing dominoes and cards. It’s nice to slow down after a busy few days. Christmas back home looks event brighter and sparklier, though perhaps that’s social media making the distance seems greater. And it does feel like a long way, weird that it’s almost Christmas and we’re in blue skies and soaring temperatures.

On Christmas Eve we head out for drinks but there’s no-one out. We’d heard that Christmas Eve is normally busy with people letting off fireworks but wherever they are it’s not in Palermo. It feels disappointing but not too bad – we’re out and about in Buenos Aires, it’s warm and there are blue skies and we’re the epitome of dressed up with nowhere to go.

Davo and I practise tango steps, tracing the metal footsteps embedded in the pavement outside a tango school and we head back to our apartment for drinks and create our own fun.

Later, around 9pm, we head out again and this time it’s busier – we have a reservation at a restaurant on a nearby corner and it’s filled with old football shirts and memorabilia plastering the walls and hanging from the ceiling. It’s busy and fun and Davo very kindly treats us. We have huge steak and wine and the smiling waiter brings us fizz at midnight and keeps topping up our glasses. We’re pretty tipsy on our walk home and have late night chats on the balcony.

The next morning is Christmas! We’re a little sore-headed from the night before but put on our swimming stuff (and our Santa hats from my Mum and Dad!) and jump into the chilly pool giggling. Definitely one the most unusual and special ways to spend Christmas morning is swimming in Santa hats with Moz and Davo, the blue skies above us and purple flowers floating on the surface of the water. We head back upstairs for French toast and coffee and Bucks Fizz on the balcony and open pressies that Davo has brought over with her – thankyou everyone for the gifts! After a late morning sunbathe we FaceTime my parents – they’re spending Christmas with their friends Helen and Les and it’s so fun to see them, messing around in silly hats. A bit of relaxation follows and we snooze on the sofa with Paddington and “aperitifs” (cheese on crackers, popcorn and olives. I know how to put on a spread…)

Afterwards we FaceTime Liz, Ian, Jane, Nathan and the twins – it was lovely to chat to them and we’re excited to see them in Feb.

That night we play cards and the post-it note game and drink wine, eat delicious steak, potatoes and salad and finish with cakes from a fancy patisserie we walked past yesterday.

On Boxing Day, I head out for a morning swim then we get ready to explore more of Buenos Aires, walking the short distance to the Japanese Gardens. It’s a steamy 34 degrees and it’s busy with people but very pretty, filled with bridges and pergolas and running water.

Afterwards, we navigate the subway and the bus system to head south towards the city’s ports. My legs stick to the seat of the bus and I’m grateful for the slight breeze coming through the open window.

We arrive in La Boca, where the poor parts of Buenos Aires are side-by-side with trendy tourist spots. In the past, port workers would throw leftover paint on the buildings and this has turned the area into a paintbox of rambling streets. Graffiti and murals cover the walls and the streets are bright with red, yellows, greens and blues. Cafes, restaurants and shops selling tourist merchandise have sprung up and we spend a fun couple of hours wandering around and soaking in the atmosphere. A few blocks away however and it totally changes, with rundown houses and crumbling architecture. People sit out on the street on chairs and guys with their tops off loiter on street corners. We walk the short distance to the stadium of Boca Juniors, Buenos Aires’s most famous team well known for their crazy fans, and then head back to find our bus north.

Back at the flat we have drinks and relax with books, play cards and FaceTime Laurie in Australia while cooking dinner. It’s great to see his face. Afterwards we have our mini bottles of whisky and Baileys that Davo brought across on duty free and then head to bed ahead of an early start the next day.

It’s been a Christmas like no other and one I definitely will not forget. It’s hard at times to be apart from family and friends, especially at a time like Christmas when it feels like home is even further away. But I’m so glad Davo could join Moz and I for this extra special Christmas on the other side of the world.